Wild in the City
by Carson's Kitty
Summary: The continuing adventures of Were!Tony and Were!Gibbs, this time a full team ensemble. AU obv Now Tony is back in the City with his Were-Wolf powers, how will he cope? and will they help or hurt him at work? And will the team notice he is different?
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hello and salutations.

Here is the first chapter of my new fic. Now due to unforeseen craziness in R/L I haven't pre-written anywhere *near* as much as I had hoped so only one chapter per day at *most* I am afraid, but I shall do my best!

For anyone who hasn't read my previous fics **The Darkness Within** and **Lessons** I suggest that you do, a) because this is wildly AU and they contain the basic premise for this universe, this _can_ be read as a standalone story but you _will_ be confused by several references and b) I gotta plug my own work, right ;-p (joke... don't flame roast me!)

My wond-tabulous beta Alder is once again turning my gibberish into readable story so I suggest you all worship her muchly.

Disclaimer: None of NCIS is mine, this whacked out lil Universe and my OC's are mine though :-) – after the stupidly long authors note...enjoy!

*****

**Chapter 1 **

Tony strolled into the bullpen and deposited coffees on his team mates' desks. It was now April and life was good - the team had only been back on active cases for the last fortnight due to the Lepatier case dragging out. Gibbs and Tony had ended up spending three weeks in Europe being interviewed by various agencies and the entire team had been through more reviews and debriefings than seemed possible.

Gibbs looked up at the younger agent, smiling when he saw the other man's good mood. It had taken a long time for DiNozzo to return to his normal gregarious self. The Alpha had watched his new pack member struggle to adapt to his new abilities ever since the kidnapping in late October. Although the initial training had gone amazingly smoothly, the integration to human society had proven problematic.

The young Bane-Wolf had initially been overwhelmed by the myriad of scents, sounds and feelings that overlaid the human world. The problem was especially obvious in the city where so many people occupied a relatively small area, the emotions washing over the were-wolf constantly, waves clashing and combining, confusing his senses until he mastered the art of filtering them out like background noise, only focussing on the ones he wanted to.

Gibbs answered his phone then hung up and started gathering his gun, badge and cell. He tossed the car keys to Tony and headed towards the elevator.

"Grab your gear, got a live one."

The agents scrambled after him, all well-versed in their roles after many years of practice. They met up at the crime scene with the van and car and stood putting on bullet-proof vests while the police officer on the scene briefed them to the situation.

"Marine Sergeant Howell has taken his wife and eight-year-old daughter hostage. We don't know what set him off but he's been shouting and smashing things up good. Agent Gibbs, if you can't talk him down soon...well, we gotta get his wife and little girl outta there," the grizzled officer said.

Gibbs nodded grimly, he hated it when they were called in on cases like this. Previously good men snapped for some reason and caused harm - though they were once regarded as heroes they were now just criminals, jailed by the people they had fought to protect. It was always worse when there were children involved, they should never have to see their parents turn into monsters like this. Most likely Howell would be diagnosed as having delayed PTSD and be shipped off to a secure facility. That was if they could talk him down without hurting anyone.

"DiNozzo, David...round back... I want you to get visuals on the mother and daughter. McGee, I need phone records, a line into the house and anything else you can find on this man's history." Gibbs snapped out orders even as he moved into a position where he could observe the front of the property.

"Yes Boss," was said in unison as the rest of the team went to their tasks.

Tony and Ziva headed across a couple of properties before coming around the back, staying low and hidden. Ziva watched Tony, impressed at his stealth. Apparently his time in the country with Gibbs had given him chance to improve his wilderness skills, although he had been reasonable before, now he moved with absolute confidence and self-awareness.

The two agents cautiously approached the rear of the house. Luckily there were several shrubs around the border of the lawn, so they could get close to the house without being seen by anyone inside. Tony gave the ex-Mossad officer a boost into the branches of a sturdy oak tree so she could look through the upstairs windows whilst he looked in on the ground floor. Ziva soon saw the little girl sitting on her bed, playing with dollies on her frilly pink, princess quilt. Downstairs Tony could see the Sergeant pacing anxiously in the family room, the body of his wife lying on the rug, her sightless eyes staring into oblivion.

Retreating further up the garden to avoid detection, Tony and Ziva updated the rest of their team on the situation inside. Sergeant Howell had apparently snapped his wife's neck, judging by the unnatural angle of her head and the lack of visible blood at the scene. This escalated the situation - from the way the daughter had been playing in her room it did not seem possible that she knew what had happened to her mother. It was only a matter of time before she went looking for her parents and discovered just how much her father had changed.

"DiNozzo, Ziva... do _not_ engage the Sergeant in close quarters for any reason. That is a direct order, David. McGee pulled up his service history and he is one of the top hand-to-hand experts we have in the Corps. If you have to take him down, shoot to kill. Understood?" Gibbs warned before they signed off again.

"Understood Gibbs," Ziva replied as she headed to the perimeter fence to grab some gear.

"Yes Boss, no hitting the big scary man, got it," Tony joked, heading back to the house.

"DiNozzo," his Alpha growled. "Do _not_ push it, he's too much, even for you."

"Yes Boss, seriously...I get it," his pack member replied, his tone slightly more respectful.

Ziva collected a rifle from one of the police officers and set up in the garden - if necessary she would take the shot to save the young girl. Tony managed to get right up to the house and position himself by the partly open French window. They waited patiently whilst Gibbs tried to calm the Marine down. Everyone was concentrating on the Sergeant, even the police officer assigned to watch the daughter. Howell was shouting down the phone at Gibbs when the little blonde girl entered the family room and saw her mother laying there. An ear piercing scream was soon heard.

"Mommy! Mommy! Wake up, Mommy...Daddy, what's wrong with Mommy? She won't wake up," the little girl sobbed, running towards her father.

Howell, deep in some horrific memory, whirled around and saw the child running towards him. He raised the gun and swung to aim at her, not seeing his own precious child but something evil. Tony didn't stop to think, he hadn't got a clear shot at the delusional Marine so he flung the French window fully open and hurtled into the room. The explosion of movement distracted Howell long enough for Tony to throw himself between him and his daughter before the trigger was fully depressed. Another childish scream pierced the air as the Bane-Wolf enveloped the child in his arms, shielding her from the deafening gun blast.

"Tony!" Ziva cried, trying to lower herself from the tree, unable to align her sights on Howell due to Tony's position.

"DiNozzo...damnit Tony, answer me!" Gibbs growled into his radio, heading for the house at full sprint.

Gibbs opened the door in time to hear the broken sobs of a small child - he headed towards them only to hear another gunshot and the silence that followed.

*****

A/N #2: I shamelessly beg for the reviews, they make me happy and they form one of the essential food groups for plot bunnies :-p don't worry though, the story gets posted either way... helpful criticism and ideas always welcome but please avoid flames... they singe the bunnies fur.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Aaaand here you go, chapter 2! I can't believe how many followers have already subscribed to this! And 7 reviews! *squees happily to herself and feeds the bunnies* my first fic has achieved over 100... let's go for 200 with this one shall we? ;-) don't let the bunnies starve! Also... give me ideas you'd like to see, I am happy to work in little scenes if I can :-D

Alder the Amazing Beta has once again performed miracles with the English language and I am going to announce that from now on January 23rd is Beta Day when we should all thank our Beta's !!!

Disclaimer: I own nothing more than my mind... and even that is going

******

Chapter 2

Gibbs burst into the family room, his gun at the ready. He felt his chest constrict when he entered the room and couldn't see his agent. There were still no sounds other than his own harsh breathing as he tried desperately to locate his missing pack member.

"_Tony? C'mon Cub, answer me,"_ Gibbs called out using his mind, not wanting to alert the Sergeant if he was still there.

"B...Boss?" came the croaked reply, accompanied by the welcome sound of a childish whimper.

Gibbs came fully into the room, past the overstuffed settee and armchairs. He had to step round broken ornaments and other debris, but once beyond the obstacles he found his missing agent. Tony was lying on the floor, his torso covering the cowering form of the blonde child, her cries muffled by the agent's shoulder. Blood ran in a steady trickle from a nasty gash just above Tony's left ear though he seemed otherwise unharmed. Turning, Gibbs saw Sergeant Howell lying in a spreading pool of blood. He had a neat bullet hole just off centre in his forehead, eyes open though they saw nothing in this world.

"DiNozzo, what the _hell_ were you thinking?" Gibbs snapped - now he knew his agent was safe, he unleashed his anger.

"The girl was my priority, got to her...kept her safe...got him," Tony stared up at his Alpha and blinked slowly.

Every instinct had him wanting to submit to the pack leader but he couldn't give in to his animal side, not in public, so he settled for tilting his head so that his throat was displayed...it was the most he could do in the current situation. Gibbs gave a curt nod before crouching by the younger man, gentle fingers belying his angry tone as he carefully checked Tony over. Once certain the other man was fine to move, Gibbs helped DiNozzo to the sofa to await the paramedics and then turned to the small girl. She was curled up and sobbing softly, and Gibbs picked her up, turning her head away from where her parents lay and heading for the door. Tenderly cradling the small figure, Gibbs carried her outside to a waiting medical team and waited for his own team to congregate.

Tim was the first to join him having already called Ducky in. Ziva soon followed, hauling a young man in the local PD uniform with her, her entire being radiating a cold, hard fury. Tony came from the house, waving off a fussing medic with one hand, clearly irritated with her.

"Look, I'll sign AMA...anything...I'm _fine_...it's just a scratch...Gibbs! _Please_ tell this woman I am fine to carry on working," Tony sounded like the argument had been going on ever since Gibbs had left with the girl.

"What the _hell_ happened in there? What happened to 'do not engage Sergeant Howell'? Does anyone want to explain why a hostage situation has ended up with a dead suspect, an injured agent and a traumatised child?" Gibbs snarled at the group gathered before him, his eyes flashing with rage.

"It seems Officer Peterson here was more interested in watching the Sergeant than his appointed duty of monitoring the girl," Ziva replied, shaking the trembling young policeman by his shirt collar before setting him loose. "He failed to notify us when she left the room, therefore giving us no time in which to distract her or her father, or extract her from a different point in the house. As it was Tony only just got there in the notch of time."

"Nick, Ziva...nick of time" Tony corrected her, rubbing one hand over his forehead wearily.

Gibbs turned on the nervous young officer, a dangerous gleam in his eye. He approached without saying a single word - he just pulled back his right fist and let fly with a beautiful right hook to the young man's cheek and nose. Not even flinching at the sound of breaking cartilage Gibbs turned on his heel and went to meet the ME as he arrived.

Ducky looked around as he stepped out the van, tutting slightly as he saw the dressing on Tony's head and the police officer trying unsuccessfully to staunch the flow of blood from his clearly broken nose. Both Ziva and Tim were watching the younger man with an air of dispassionate interest and talking with one another about the case.

"Sorry I'm late Jethro, Mr Palmer confused Lake Drive with Lake View, took us quite the wrong way…we got here in the end though," the elderly doctor said, taking the silver-haired agent's hand and checking it over for injury.

"Two bodies inside, husband and wife, eight-year-old daughter is with the paramedics," Gibbs walked his friend to the door.

"And how is young Anthony? I see he managed to get himself in the wars again," Ducky said, lowering his voice as they entered the house.

"Yeah...he played the hero, saved the little girl and got grazed for his trouble. He fired the shot that took down the Sergeant," Gibbs couldn't quite keep the anger from his voice.

"Now Jethro, don't be too hard on the lad, his heart's in the right place and he _is_ terribly brave," the ME admonished gently.

Gibbs just jerked his head in reply and watched over the ME as he did his standard tests and prepped the bodies for transport. The agent watched his team as they came in and processed the scene, except for Tony. The senior field agent took on the task of contacting child services and escorting the woman they sent over up to the girl's room. He helped the social worker collect a bag of clothes for Melissa – a quick search found details of her age and name – and a few toys. Gibbs had banned him from actually working the scene due to his injury and the social worker, Patricia, required an escort whilst in the building.

Back at HQ they dropped the physical evidence off with Abby and started to write up their reports. Or Tony tried at least, he had barely set foot inside the building when he was greeted by a shriek and a hug of epic proportions.

"Tony! What did he do to you?! Why is it always you? Not that I _want _Timmy or Ziva to get shot, but why to _you_ always manage to be in the way of flying projectiles? Huh? From now on you wear full body armour, all the time!" Abby practically shook as she held him.

"Abby! Abs... I'm fine, just a scratch. Not even a concussion this time," Tony reassured her. "How many Caf-Pow's you on so far…?"

"Umn... three," she replied, blushing. "Okay…maybe six...but only 'cos I was worried about you!"

"Okay...you get to tell Gibbs. I gotta run Abs, I want to finish my report at a decent time tonight, I got tickets to see that new movie, 'Repo Men' with Rhi," Tony winked and started to head out.

"Oh you mean the movie with debt collectors after people with organ transplants? Tell me what it's like tomorrow," Abby called after him.

"Will do," the agent waved over his shoulder, whistling as he headed back to the bullpen.

*****

Tony sat in the car next to Gibbs as they headed back to the Alpha's house. DiNozzo was already fairly certain he was going to be passing his ticket onto Den for the older Bane to accompany his pack mate to the movie, Gibbs looked beyond ticked.

Gibbs was growling softly under his breath, he hated it when his team were injured. Although he could understand why Tony had gone against his wishes, it didn't change the fact that the younger man had deliberately disobeyed a direct Alpha order. Under pack law that required punishment. If it hadn't been for the presence of Den then the Alpha may have been lenient, but the visiting Bane-Wolf was a representative of the Council. Den had become a good friend over the months since moving to DC and Gibbs had actually considered asking him to join the pack once Tony's probationary period was declared complete. Until then Den was essentially the younger man's parole officer and unable to join the pack due to conflict of interests.

"Go to your room Cub," Gibbs growled as they entered the building, "I have to discuss this with Den and Rhi, I'll call you when we come to a decision."

Tony deflated, he hadn't realised that the other Wolf would be brought into the punishment. He expected Rhi as it was a pack matter but Den was an outsider and he had hoped that the dark skinned wolf wouldn't have to know until after the fact. The young lycan was still tentative in his friendship with the other man, even though part of Den's duties – other than monitor – was mentor and confidant for anything Tony didn't want to discuss with his Alpha.

The younger agent slunk up to his room. Now away from prying eyes he could allow his body language to become purely lycan and Gibbs could almost see the tail tucked between the younger man's legs - if his posture was any more submissive he'd be crawling and waving a white flag.

DiNozzo lay on his bed and stared at the ceiling. For the first time since moving into his boss's house the soothing grey and blue tones of his room failed to calm his nerves. Although he knew he was in trouble with his Alpha and the Council representative, he also knew that if he was placed in the same situation tomorrow he would do the exact same thing again. Thanks to his fast reflexes and were-wolf speed he had managed to survive the actual danger, now he just had to face the consequences of his actions.

A short time passed and Tony began to pace the length of his room, staring blankly at the movie posters that now adorned his walls. He was focussing so hard on distracting himself he jumped when there was a knock on his door and Rhi stuck her head in the room.

"They're ready Tony," her tone was soft, the gentle smile reassuring him that there was nothing too bad to be expected.

The Alpha and Den were in the family room, sitting in relaxed poses. Tony concentrated on his empathy and calmed down slightly when he realised there was no overt feelings of antagonism in the room. Gibbs still gave off a hint of worry, disappointment and anger but stronger tones of relief and happiness at seeing his agent was present. Den radiated a mix of disappointment, gratitude and amusement. The young Bane-wolf nervously sat on the sofa and waited to hear what their verdict was.

"Tony, I hear y'all disobeyed an order from your Alpha, boy...as the Council rep I've been told by Jethro an' Rhi. But since ya din't do anythin' to threaten the Clan, I ain't gonna write you up to the Council, a'right Cub? Heck, I told Jeni you're the bravest Bane I ever met," Den gave him a toothy grin.

The agent turned his eyes towards his boss and Alpha. While Den had obviously decided to let him off lightly, the same was not necessarily true of the other man. Tony had disregarded his orders on two levels, as both his superior at work and within the pack. Tony felt himself shrinking under the icy blue gaze. In silence the older man stood and headed through the kitchen, jerking his head to signal the nervous figure. Tony followed him down into the basement, confused as Gibbs simply handed him a saw.

"What are we working on Boss?" he asked after several minutes of silent work.

Apart from several piles of timber and the ever present hand tools the basement seemed surprisingly empty without the bulk of a partially built boat filling the large space. There was a large table now pushed to one side, a few toys still scattered on the surface from when Gibbs had made toys for the children hospital at Christmas, Tony and Rhi had helped paint them.

Now, however, Gibbs had marked several planks and had Tony sawing them to length with no explanation as to their intended use. The younger were-wolf found the silence unnerving; he was still waiting for Gibbs to announce the penalty for his reckless actions that morning.

"Building something for you Cub" Gibbs gave a wry smile.

"Why do you keep calling me cub? You know I don't like it," Tony groused as he continued cutting wood.

"Because you keep acting like one, you _always_ leap first and look after. So far you have managed to survive, but that's not always going to happen. Anyway, we're building you a kennel... I'm not going to punish you for today, you saved that little girl's life and for once I agree there was no alternative solution. I could have killed that punk kid cop though, he's the one to blame. But let this serve as a warning for you, Tony, you pull a stupid stunt or disobey me again and there is _any_ way it could be avoided...you will find out 'being in the doghouse' isn't just a saying around here anymore." Gibbs watched the younger man carefully as he spoke.

"What? I misbehave, you make me sleep in a _kennel?!_" Tony looked horrified.

"Not just that, you go on punishment detail, then you spend every minute at home in wolf form and have exactly zero privileges. Sleep outside in the kennel, leftovers or meat mix for meals, not allowed on the furniture if allowed in the house and definitely not TV, coffee, beer or pizza for the duration," the Alpha smiled at the younger man's stricken expression. "Same goes for Rhi if she screws up too DiNozzo, it's pack rule now."

Tony muttered angrily to himself as he worked alongside Gibbs on the large wooden structure. Despite not being happy about the purpose of the wooden shelter he had to admit it was well designed and roomy. Gibbs made it large enough that more than one pack member could use it at once if needed, the double walls lined with insulation to keep any occupant warm and dry. The raised bed platform was soon fitted with a sturdy rubber mat for comfort, a blanket or straw would be placed on top for warmth. Jethro let Tony choose the paint scheme, saying since he was likely to be the most frequent user then he should pick. After some moaning Tony picked out some white for the walls and navy blue for the roof.

It took four evenings of steady work during their free time to complete the kennel. Once complete they carefully separated it at the joins and Rhi and Den helped them to carry it out to the yard. Gibbs set it up on the patio and bolted it down firmly, attaching a long chain by the kennel door. He ignored the dark looks aimed his way by the two younger pack members. Even though the new kennel was a beautiful piece of craftsmanship Tony felt no pride in his work on it and hoped he would never have to use it.

"So Jethro...twenty bucks says the Cub uses it within a month," Den laughed, slapping the younger man on the shoulder and giving him a friendly shake.

Tony growled good naturedly. At least now he knew they were past the Howell incident, all he had to do was avoid screwing up and the hated kennel would never be used.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Chapter 3 for you all. Chapter 4 may be a tad late as many many appointments of much boringness tomorrow, though Tuesday is currently empty so hopefully catch up a bit then. I grovel for your forgiveness dear readers! Many thanks to Lightlowemon whose suggestion actually made me tweak this chapter, I hope you like it.

Please please do give me your opinions, I am still kinda just blundering around in the dark with writing (though seems to be working so far) a billion and one chocolate coated science-types for Alder the Amazing

Disclaimer: If you've seen them on telly I don't own them.

*****

Chapter 3

Several days passed without incident and Tony was feeling pleased with himself. He was finally sleeping through the night with no sign of nightmares or flashbacks to his time with Lepatier, work was going well and none of his workmates were showing any sign of noticing any changes in him. They had taken his move into their boss's house in stride, Ziva especially knew how important it was to have someone there for you in the aftermath of torture - she had shared an apartment with another agent ever since returning to America for the same reason. Agent Debra Lebrowski was from the legal department, having retired from field work after her own negative experiences. Ziva had met her in the gym during her second year with NCIS and their friendship had grown ever since.

Tim was working hard, he had lost an hour of the morning to the fact Tony had rearranged the keys on his keyboard. The younger agent had ended up taking all the keys off and refitting them, only to find out his irreverent partner had also changed the computer settings to think the keyboard was in Arabic and uninstalled the mouse drivers. Tim had ended up waiting until Ziva was in so that she could reset the keyboard since she knew the Arabic layout.

Gibbs didn't know whether to throttle his second in command or celebrate the fact that the younger man was finally performing pranks again. Even McGee hadn't stayed mad for long, though that may also be due to the fact that Tony was now receiving multiple emails in response to his advert on where he now had a profile listing his interests as Linux and writing binary poetry. Ziva and Tim were being highly entertained by his reactions to the various messages he was receiving.

"What the? Another one? 'Roses are FF0000, Violets are 0000FF... all of my Base are belong to you...' what does this even mean? McGeek, I need a translation here...oh there's a picture attached... just a minu...oh my god! The _horror_...! Quick, Ziva...pass me the brain bleach! Now!" Tony was backing away from his computer as though the woman in the picture may just leap from the monitor.

Gibbs looked up again as Tony fell over his trash can, a smile tugged at the older man's lips before he could stop it. Letting his eyes rove around the room he saw the other two members of his team nearly collapsing with laughter, several other agents and office personnel stopped to see what was happening and Director Vance was on the upper walkway, trying to maintain an expression of disapproval. Tony saw the Director just as the man in question managed to school his features into the required scowl – causing the agent to right himself quickly and start concentrating really intently on the first file he could find. The bullpen soon settled down again and the low hum of working agents filled the air.

Unfortunately the day then went rapidly downhill. The team were called out to the scene of a grisly murder, a young petty officer brutally killed and dumped in an alley. To make matters worse the heavens opened and the torrential downpour meant that there was very little evidence to find - what they could get was either compromised or of little forensic value due to the deluge.

Tim slipped in the oily mud as he tried to look in the nearby dumpster and he went down with a cry, catching his arm on a jagged piece of metal as he went. Tony ran to his aid, only to end up on his knees and gagging. Despite the rain suppressing airborne odours the rancid smell of the rotted contents of the dumpster combined with the fresh blood of his friend proved overwhelming. Just as he thought it couldn't get worse the storm drains began to overflow due to a blockage and even more rotten sludge started an assault on his delicate senses. Since Ducky had already retrieved the body Gibbs decided to call it a day and sent his agents back to NCIS. There the drenched team all showered and changed before writing their somewhat scanty reports on the alley and doing some preliminary research on the petty officer. With little to nothing to go on Gibbs dismissed his team so they could go home and get food and rest. Though all indications were currently pointing to this being a typical mugging gone bad, something was causing Gibbs' gut to churn. There had been far too many 'muggings' lately, though all different enough that they didn't seem to be connected.

Another couple of weeks went by and three more bodies showed up in alleyways around the crime scene. It was as if the killer was mocking them - they had no suspects, nothing to link the victims beyond the fact they were navy personnel out drinking when attacked. The entire team had worked almost non-stop for the entire two weeks until they hit breaking point.

Tony skipped on going home and headed out to a bar instead. He stopped by a little tavern not far from Gibb's place, a traditional bar by the name of Gilligan's. Tony loved winding up the barman, Mikey, by asking after members of the cast from Gilligan's Island. However, tonight he just ordered some whisky and drank it straight, no ice or water. He was fed up of these muggings. He knew there was something linking them together, but it was eluding him and it made him so dang angry. Even his heightened senses were proving useless. Drink after drink passed his lips with him barely noticing. It was nearing closing time when the tall dark figure of Den entered the doorway. The Bane approached the younger man and tried to talk to him.

"Tony? C'mon man, it's time y'all were headin' home to bed. Gibbs ain't gonna be happy y'got drunk on a school night," Den tugged on Tony's arm.

"Geddoff me," Tony growled at the larger man.

"C'mon Cub, y'don't wanna be upsettin' that boss of yours," Den forcefully lifted the younger Bane and propelled him out the door, waving to Mikey as they left.

Tony whined the entire four block walk back to Gibbs' house. He had drunk enough to make him belligerent but was also sober enough to realise he would be regretting this when the hangover came in the morning.

Den shook his head. He could understand why DiNozzo had ended up drinking…heck...the kid probably didn't even realise how much he was drinking at the time. Over the last few months the older Ban-Wolf had come to know the brilliant young agent well enough to know that the frustration was killing him. Without a bad guy to target the entire team was slowly getting more and more tense as each day went by.

Once the drunken agent was bundled into the house Den managed to strip him to his shorts and get him to his bed, forcing a pint of water into him en route to reduce the hangover. The large man then headed down to the basement where he found Gibbs, working on a rocking chair as a gift for a friend. The silver-haired man was nursing a glass of bourbon though nowhere near as affected by drink as his young pack mate.

"How bad?" Gibbs growled.

"Your boy's gonna have a sore head in the mornin' but I think he'll be good to work," Den replied, sitting by the Alpha.

"He'd better be," was the grunted reply as Gibbs continued to sand methodically.

Den stayed on the couch for the night, eager to see the state his young friend was in the following morning. Sure enough Tony stumbled downstairs and was wincing at every sound. The fried breakfast prepared by Rhi had him bolting for the bathroom before reappearing looking somewhat grey though considerably more alert. After drinking some more water he headed out to work, still declining any attempt at breakfast. Gibbs left soon after having finished his own food, though as he was about to leave Den got his attention.

"Don't you be too hard on that boy, so long as he does his job right he ain't done nuthin' too bad last night," he advised the older man.

"We'll see," Gibbs growled, still not happy with the young Bane's condition.

By the time Jethro got to the office Tony was looking far more alert. He had obviously eaten on the way, the remains of a breakfast bagel in his bin. Gibbs smirked, Tony had stuck to fresh fruit juice or plain water ever since he had become a were-wolf and his tastes in food had also changed radically. Although he still adored pizza he was now picky about where it came from, only ordering from one pizzeria that used one hundred percent guaranteed all fresh ingredients and his coffee now came from the same gourmet coffee shop as Gibbs' own. However this morning he had an unopened cup from the same fast food place as the half eaten bagel, the older agent was going to enjoy this.

Tony was already working on paperwork, following a trail of receipts, trying to link victims. He took the lid off his coffee and took a large sip without paying attention, only to spit it back out and start gagging. The artificial hazelnut creamer and cheap fake coffee tasted foul to his delicate senses, whereas before the coffee was merely 'not great' from that place. The chemicals and artificial flavouring were overpowering and metallic on his tongue. Bolting for the bathroom for the second time in one morning Tony grabbed water to rinse away the terrible taste.

With a grin Gibbs put the second coffee he was carrying onto Tony's desk. For a change he had ordered a duplicate of his own brew. When the other man returned he saw the familiar white cup and smiled his thanks to his boss. This time he took the lid off and sniffed cautiously, he saw that it was black with no hint of the plain cream and triple sugars that he normally had from this particular supplier. After taking a cautious sip of the strong, black drink he sighed in appreciation. With his lycan senses he could now detect a myriad of underlying flavours that gave depth and character to the coffee.

"Thanks Boss...I needed that," Tony said with a genuine smile.

He greeted Tim and Ziva as they arrived and his new found enthusiasm seemed contagious, the entire team finding a fresh zest for the case and feeling less defeated. Perhaps today was going to be better after all.

*****

As Tim sat looking at the floor in ER that evening he wondered where the day had gone wrong. He hated waiting for the doctor, waiting to see how his team mate, his _friend_ was doing beyond those sealed doors.

He looked up as the doctor came out, a serious look on her face.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Hello my lovelies... sorry about the delay. Real life and all that jazz... it sucketh...

Alder, once again you have come to my rescue.... I will now call you Super-Tree and write you a theme song (after the fic is finished)

Disclaimer: Blame Bellisario.... only the were-wolfiness and OC's are mine. If you sue all you'll get is a grubby moggy.

ps: reviews make me happy! please make me happy *imagine huge eyed kitty here*

pps - warning.... a smidge of bad language this chapter... nothing we haven't heard in the show though

*****

Chapter 4

Tim stood and wiped his hands on his pants, looking over his shoulder for the fourth member of his team. Surely he would want to be here for the doctor's news. Appearing as if summoned, Tony came into the waiting area, putting his cell back into his pocket. The senior field agent had both Ducky and Abby in tow.

"What's the verdict Doc?" Tony asked, coming to a stop by McGee.

"Well, Agent Gibbs will be absolutely fine, his wound received several stitches but there is no concussion evident. Agent David is in more serious condition. She will definitely be staying with us for a few days, she has severe internal bleeding and has gone into surgery. We may have to look at removing the spleen, though I am confident she will make a full recovery," the ER doctor said.

"Oh dear," Dr Mallard exclaimed. "Anthony, Timothy...whatever happened?"

"Well, McGee was actually with them when the accident happened, he can give you the most detail," Tony said as he led Abby to a seat.

"I...ah...well...we..." Tim stuttered, still shaken up. He set his jaw and started again. "We...ah...were called out to interview a witness, we had an anonymous tip on the hotline. Gibbs was driving, he dropped me and Tony off a couple blocks away...to...umn...record the meeting with the directional mike. We moved in closer to the meeting point, but Tony got a call from the Director and went out of range of the kit so the cell wouldn't interfere with the recording."

Tim stopped to gulp at the bottled water Abby produced from her purse and pressed into his hands. He was still shaking and Tony made a mental note to make sure the younger man let Ducky check him over soon. After he drank half the water Tim continued with the story.

"I set up the equipment while waiting for Tony and did a sound check with Gibbs. Then this huge truck...a...umn...chevvy I think...? roared out of a side road and headed straight for the car. Gibbs managed to start the engine and was pulling out when the truck broadsided them. Tony heard the crash and...well...things got a bit hectic after that."

Tony took over the retelling, remembering how his stomach had plummeted at the sound of screeching metal and shattering glass. He had called out to his Alpha using his telepathy but there was no reply, just the heavy scent of burnt rubber and McGee's frantic calls. The Bane-Wolf had hung up on the Director with no explanation, dialling 911 as he ran towards the scene. He had quickly overtaken Tim and was in time to see the driver of the truck climb out of the cab.

"So I yelled for Tim to check on the Boss and Ziva and I took off after the dirtbag. Took a few minutes to catch up but I got the bastard…" Tony didn't mention the fact that he lost the man for a few moments and had to locate him through scent. "By the time I dragged him back to McGee the ambulance was there and they were loading everyone up. I sent Tim with Gibbs and Ziva and brought our new 'friend' back to stew in lockup. Grabbed you and Abby and well, you know the rest."

Tony sat beside Abby and Tim, leaning forward so he could rest his elbows on his knees and let his head hang. The 'post adrenaline rush' slump had kicked in and he felt exhausted. Thankfully Ducky would now be able to get Gibbs out of the hospital and back home, where the doctors wouldn't notice anything strange about how quick the agent healed from his wounds. Of course, he would have to wear the dressings for a few extra days to avert suspicion, but the skin would already be knitting together. Tony was also emotionally drained - it had taken all his self control to not just kill the man who had charged the NCIS car. He was currently in the lockup at NCIS and would be interrogated in the morning.

Ducky looked over the younger members of the group. He would soon have to chase them all out to get rest...the two boys at least. Abby had announced she could stay for Ziva's surgery and call to let them know when the Israeli was in a room. Tim was slowly regaining some colour and had nothing wrong with him that a good night's sleep and a meal wouldn't solve. Tony worried the elderly ME the most - as one of the few people aware of the agent's changed state, Ducky was also privy to DiNozzo's new family life and he knew just how much the younger man now relied on his Alpha both physically and emotionally.

"Come along now Timothy, you had better go home and get some rest. I'll help Anthony get Jethro back home and settled. Abigail, do make sure and call us as soon as you hear anything…" the British doctor barely left time for people to acknowledge him before he was reminiscing, "You know, this reminds me of an adventure I had with Jethro many years ago - we were still in Europe at the time and a French van driver came upon us on a country lane...well, let's just say he had a rather original view of the rules of the road! We were on one of those tiny, twisty mountain tracks...dangerous enough with Jethro's usual style of driving. Anyway, this van came careening around a bend and..."

Tony listened thankfully to the rambling tale as he allowed the older man to lead him through to the nurse's station. The agent was still slightly dazed as the doctor filled out the necessary forms and an orderly went to get Gibbs. It took the combined efforts of both Ducky and Tony to get Gibbs into the car - although his injuries were fairly minor, the side effects of the painkillers administered by the doctor in the ER had the silver-haired man both fractious and tired. His friend and his young pack-mate found themselves essentially handling an almost six-foot child.

"Come along now Jethro, the sooner we get in the car the sooner we get you home," Ducky said in a firm yet kind tone. "Oh dear Anthony, I must see what that doctor gave him, it doesn't seem to agree with were-wolves in the slightest!"

Gibbs was finally settled into Tony's car and they took him home, Tony driving carefully to avoid jostling the wounded man more than necessary. Once back at the house they soon had him settled down for the night, eight hours uninterrupted sleep would have him pretty much back to normal. Tony was much happier after seeing his boss and Alpha alive and in one piece... if in a filthy mood.

Abby rang shortly after midnight - Ziva was out of surgery fine and settled in a room. She had woken briefly and recognised the Goth before drifting off again.

DiNozzo, on the other hand, barely slept all night. He kept waking and pacing nervously, he wanted to _do _something. Obviously the team had questioned someone involved, as the thug had been hired to take them out of the investigation.

Across the city Tim was pacing his own room, equally restless. There had to be _something_ they could do. With Gibbs and Ziva out of action for the moment it was down to him and Tony to solve this before anyone else got hurt. He picked up his phone and called his friend - McGee knew Tony would be awake and worrying... Despite the frat-boy attitude he showed the world, the senior agent was a fine cop and an attack against his team, his _family_ would have him up and thinking of revenge.

"Tony? We can't wait until Gibbs and Ziva are back to one-hundred percent, we have to go after them now. They'll be cocky with the others injured, heck, the Boss and Ziva are the only ones who have been out questioning people, they probably don't even know we exist…" Tim spoke rapidly.

"Probie? Z'at you?" Tony had finally been dozing but was soon fully alert. "Hey you might be onto something there. We'll see what we get out the dirtbag tomorrow...hey, you know what McCrafty? You gave me an idea...how do you feel about going undercover with me on this one?"


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Another chapter. I apologise for the tardiness. Hopefully the mentalness will calm down again soon, at mo am sleeping 14+ hours a day and doing college work... deadlines are this week then I can focus on the fic again :)

As always, thank you to Alder, your encouragement and advice are proving invaluable.

Disclaimer: you break it, you bought it... I intend to put them back in one piece, hopefully Mr B won't notice the were-wolf thing...

Chapter 5

Tony dropped Gibbs off at NCIS and headed back out to grab coffees and bagels. The Bane was joined by McGee - in the immediate aftermath of his kidnapping in October, Gibbs preferred the agents went about their routine in pairs when possible and it had become a habit in the months since. It also gave them a chance to discuss their plans without their ever-vigilant boss overhearing them.

"So, what do you mean undercover? You got a plan already?" Tim asked the older man.

"Tim, I am the Obi Wan to your Luke when it comes to undercover...of _course_ I have a plan!" Tony grinned. "We have our dirtbag in lockup, we find out who he works for...then we get hired on. We already know they are down a man since we have him, you have the know-how to give us a less-than-savoury history on the system and we can get Abs to log our fingerprints as criminals...nothing too major, but hinting that we did more than they managed to make stick in court. We get the guys who ordered the hit on Gibbs and Ziva and maybe find out what links the Navy deaths."

McGee nodded slowly, the basic plan made sense. He didn't like keeping Gibbs in the dark though, and said so. They would be going deep undercover and good backup would be needed. Tony listened to the younger man and considered the points.

"You're right McBrainy...we'll brief Gibbs once we've worked out the entire plan. If we have it fully worked out then there's more of a chance he'll let us try. So...backstory...brothers or cousins? Think we could pull that off? Trick is to keep our first names similar or the same so you don't slip up. I'll be Tonio Salicci and you can be Timmy Salicci...general back story of petty crime and we're from DC, we've got similar accents to each other now. Dumb down the words though, try sound less like you've been to college and more like you've been in a few gang fights…"

Tim looked nervous, he had never done a deep cover op before. Tony had a chameleon-like ability to slip on a new persona like a new coat, McGee still stammered when Gibbs glared at him. The agents were nearly back at NCIS with the breakfasts - DiNozzo sent the younger man to Abby to go over the plan and think up the "Salicci's" stories in detail, Tony headed to the morgue to meet with Gibbs and Ducky.

*****

Ducky and Gibbs were sitting in the ME's cozy private office, ever since his tenure in the Navy Yard had become truly secure the British doctor had subtly altered his inner sanctum to become a haven for Gibbs whenever the were-wolf had sensory spikes or headaches brought on after overusing his abilities. All the materials were natural, from the wool carpet to the leather sofa and chairs to the oak desk, only natural and low scented cleaning products were used and Ducky always had a soothing pot of tea on the go.

Tony slipped into the room quietly, he knew his Alpha had a headache that morning and was refusing his pain pills ever since the adverse reaction the night before. On entering he saw Gibbs and Ducky sitting talking quietly, Gibbs sipping at something that surprised Tony, his powerful sense of smell easily identifying the liquid as peppermint tea.

"Ah Anthony, just in time for a refreshing cup of mint tea, ideal for an upset stomach or to help one relax," Ducky welcomed the younger man.

"Umn...no thanks Ducky...I just got back with coffee and pastries, got enough to share," Tony offered the cups and bag of Danish treats.

Gibbs all but pounced on the coffee. He despised the herbal tea but had drunk most of a cup to appease his friend and he had to admit his stomach did feel a lot more settled, allowing him to enjoy the coffee and flaky pastry snack that his pack-mate had brought.

"So what you guys talk about while I was gone?" Tony asked as he took a bite of his own Danish.

"We were just reminiscing about our days in Europe, have I ever told you of the mission in Romania, where I first learnt about Jethro's abilities?" the ME asked the wide-eyed younger man.

Tony shook his head, it was something he had wondered about ever since learning the doctor knew about Gibbs being a were-wolf. It made things at work a lot easier - Ducky being able to confirm facts that the were-wolves detected through scent and being their primary care when injured - but the younger man also knew that his boss was very secretive of his Lycan heritage and wouldn't have told the elder man without good cause. DiNozzo looked at Gibbs and grinned as the older man nodded, signalling his permission for Tony to hear the tale.

"Well, it was many years ago now, we were in Romania following up some leads related to a case Jethro was assigned on whilst based in Paris. He was without a team at the time, it was just before he was paired up with Jenny, so I accompanied him as a short-term partner… Not many people are aware of this, but due to my experience with the British military I was actually granted temporary Agent status for several months back then... I know you have wondered about my tales of our time in Europe and why an ME would be involved. Where was I...oh yes, Romania…a marvellous country, very rugged. We were in the middle of nowhere when Jethro started acting very oddly, finding excuses to go off on his own - now I know he was going to change to wolf-form to use his senses better but at the time it was most confusing." Ducky was animated as he spoke, his eyes lighting up with the remembered adventures.

Gibbs was smiling softly, he may have been reluctant to share his true self with Ducky in the first place but he had never had reason to regret it. The Scotsman had a way of being one of the few truly open minded people in the world - since he had known and respected Gibbs the man, he was willing to give Gibbs the wolf a chance to prove his worthiness too.

"So... there we were, soaking wet and freezing cold, the snow falling thick around us, when Jethro suddenly grabbed my arm and told me to follow him, there was shelter nearby," Ducky had continued with his tale as Gibbs was distracted with his own thoughts. Tony's eyes glowed as he sat, entranced by the story. "Sure enough we soon came upon a barn, fairly weatherproof but full of very dry hay so not safe to light a fire. We nestled down and warmed each other as best we could when Jethro announced he could warm us both most thoroughly if I trusted him. I was too tired and cold to care and told him to get a bloody move on before we lost toes to the chill, well...he shifted to his wolf form and I must admit I thought I was hallucinating - not that I minded as my hallucination was most delightfully furry and warm...and smelled like my old corgi Major did after he had been in the rain..."

Tony laughed outright at the look on Gibbs' face as he was compared to a damp corgi. The young Bane was delighted to be getting this insight into his boss - even after the months of living with him DiNozzo still knew little of his Alpha's earlier years, though Jackson had many tales of the harrowing adventures Jethro had as a cub.

"Where did I get to...oh yes, I woke up the following morning and Jethro was still sound asleep in his wolf-form, well...it did give me a fright. After he was back to his human self we had a long chat, the blizzard was still raging so we were going nowhere that day at least… Jethro said he had wanted to tell me but hadn't found the ideal time," Ducky chuckled slightly at the memory.

"Ya think? Not something you bring up over dinner or just driving along back roads Duck," Gibbs broke into the story, a wry smile on his lips.

"Yes, I can see how it would be a difficult subject to broach..." Ducky conceded. "We were stuck in that barn for five days in all - luckily for us Jethro managed to go hunting and found some wild pheasants and grouse sheltering in the hedgerows nearby and I managed to turn an old barrel into a brazier for a safe place to light a fire. It was primitive and tested our patience, but on the plus side it gave me time to accept Jethro's gift for what it is. I fear had we been in the 'normal' world I may have had far more difficulty accepting it, as it was, Jethro's wolf saved my life both that first night by supplying much needed protection against the cold and then later on the food supply. After we made it back to civilisation I made it my duty to learn everything I could about were-wolf lore and medicine, and studied wolf physiology and basic veterinary care for dogs. Jethro managed to persuade a friend of his in the Mystica to teach me a few of the more simple healing potions. As you see Anthony, the tale is far less exciting than you may think - I am only glad that it leaves me able to help you in your time of need."

Tony sat back, his half-finished coffee forgotten in his loose grip, in danger of spilling at any second. Whilst he had known that Gibbs appreciated Ducky's help as a doctor who knew his Lycan status he hadn't realised that he had revealed himself to save the other man's life. Clan law actually said that Gibbs should have let Ducky die in that cold barn, or at least have taken him to a member of the Mystica to have his memories erased.

Gibbs rescued the younger man's coffee just before it slid free. To be honest the supervisory agent had pretty much forgotten telling the doctor about being a were-wolf...or showing him, as the case may be. It was so long ago now that it just seemed that Ducky had always known. Gibbs smiled at his old friend. Having had only one close friend know for so long had left him isolated from his kind, yet now here he was, an Alpha with a pack, albeit only two members so far...though Den was a certainty once Tony was past probation. Jeni and Nick, her Mate, were looking at relocating to DC for work commitments and would become affiliated even if not actually joining the Pack itself, and in Ducky they had the closest non-Order thing to a Shaman. Then there was his human family too, Abby, Tim, Ziva and even Palmer.

Gibbs smiled and lay back for a short nap, relaxing under Ducky's care. Tony slipped out as quietly as he had entered, heading for Abby's lab.

*****

"Tim! Stop _touching_ my babies! I swear...you've been spending too much time with Tony. If you touch even _one_ more piece of my equipment without asking then I will superglue you to the wall!" Abby slapped Tim's hands away from the mass spectrometer and looked over the readouts anxiously.

"I'm sorry Abs, I'm just nervous...if Gibbs finds out before we're ready he'll just say no. Hey, did you see Ziva this morning? How is she?" McGee wiped his hands on his pants leg and stepped away from the machines.

"Of course I saw Ziva, she's fine…though bored out her mind and scaring the orderlies! I told her you'd visit at lunch. Now...here you go... Antonio 'Tonio' Salicci and Timoteo 'Timmy' Salicci, half brothers... grew up in Anandale Virginia and bounced around facilities from a young age. Tonio's mother left for places unknown when he was two, Timmy's mother arrived on the scene and so did Timmy within the year, both Mr and Mrs Salicci died in 1984 leaving the boys to the foster system. Tonio favours carjacking and is an excellent driver, Timmy is more into cyber crime...thought I'd better play to your strengths Tim...according to all the records on here Timmy is very reliant on Tonio, won't make a move without him - Tonio is very protective of his little brother," Abby zipped across to another computer and pulled up prints whilst slurping a Caf-Pow. "Right, prints and records are ready to enter into the system on Gibbs' say so, range of minor offenses for both of you, some time served. Though weapons possessed without a license charges have been made, there have been no violent crimes convictions...how's that sounding?"

"Great Abs!" Tony breezed in for the end of the rap sheet, "And you can do drivers licenses and the other paperwork?"

"Of course! I am Abby Scuito, tech-extraordinaire! But if it wasn't for the fact they turn out to be evil or stupid or both I _so _need an assistant, because as awesome as I am I am _still _getting behind on my caseload. So until you have Gibbs' permission you guys can scram, I need to see what Major Mass-Spec has for me," Abby twirled away and was soon ignoring the two men.

They headed down to the parking lot at the rear of the building and started looking over the various impounded cars. There were several waiting for collection before they could go to the main impounds lot and one of them should suit their needs nicely. They wanted something flashy yet practical, and not so flashy that they immediately got Metro paying attention. They found the ideal car in a somewhat battered but beautifully tuned mustang.

Heading back into the main building they finished up some paperwork before heading into the hospital to visit Ziva over lunch. Both young men felt a lot better for seeing their team mate awake and so much more alert. They were amused that she had managed to terrify all the male staff and had half the women worshipping her - she had apparently offered them lessons in ways to 'discourage' unwanted attentions from the porters and male nurses.

Tony and Tim were still laughing as they entered Abby's lab, though their levity soon fled when they saw the expression on Gibbs' face. The silver-haired agent was standing with a pale and shaken looking Abby, their fake ID's were up on the large plasma and their boss looked furious. Tony gulped as his Alpha levelled an icy blue stare at them. Gibbs' voice could have etched granite.

"Would either of you boys like to explain why you have planned an entire operation behind my back? And why you have used NCIS resources without sanction?"

A/N2: ps, reviews still make my heart happy... ;-) I will happily beg as per usual... am aiming chapter 6 to be up Tuesday


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Hey, sooooo sorry about the hiatus there… college has been nuts and then to top it off I got my right hand bitten by a dog… not fun. Here's chapter 6 for you.

Thanks go out to Alder for her support and encouragement. And a huge thanks to those who have sent notes letting me know you want more and asking if I'm ok, hugs to all of you!

As always I will beg for reviews… I am not 100% sure of this chapter and would like to know what you think.

Disclaimer: Still not mine…

Chapter 6

Abby was bouncing along to the latest album by Napalm Death, a British band that she had recently discovered thanks to Tony. Her friend had given her a CD after revealing his new girlfriend had similar tastes in music. Abby had since met Rhi several times and the two women got along well, even if Abby _was_ ready to boil over with curiosity over the way they met. Tony and Rhi were very quiet about their private life and that in itself was unusual for the outgoing agent and it had Abby's internal 'hinky alert' going off.

With a shake of her head she forced herself to concentrate on the case and not on her best friend's love life. There was absolutely no evidence linking the various mugging-themed murders. The Goth growled and turned the music up, there were thousands of particulates and transfer evidence samples to go through. The forensics specialist fervently wished that her job was as simple as television depicted, one or two neat boxes of relevant evidence that clearly linked killer to crime. As it was she had samples of over a hundred carpets, five brands of cigarette, four types of gum, soil samples from all over the State and enough samples of people and animal hair that she could make a very unusual wig...however nothing stood out as being either unusually common or rare or obviously linking more than two scenes. The only evidence shared was easily written off as circumstantial as it was natural particulates found pretty much everywhere in the city, in fact it would have been more unusual if they were missing.

Slurping on an almost empty Caf-Pow cup Abby left the machines to their tests, she had kicked Tony and Tim out of the lab earlier and had taken notes on what they wanted. Much of their 'undercover background pack' was ready to go and get inserted into the various computer systems once final clearance was given but there was still some work to do. A few articles to write for local papers to go in the online archives, a redundant website on a band that 'Timmy' had been a member of during his brief stint at community college, basically just snippets that would come up if anyone did a simple 'Google' search on the two men.

The Goth minimized the website for 'Timmy's' band as she heard the elevator ding. Gibbs walked into the room with a fresh Caf-Pow in hand and a soft smile on his lips. He was still in a good mood after the time spent with Tony and Ducky and now he had an excuse to see the girl he thought of as a surrogate daughter. The Alpha knew there was something going on within seconds of entering the lab, Abby was excessively hyperactive – even by her usual standards – and the silver-haired agent's gut was playing up. The only time he felt like this was when his family was in trouble.

"So you see Gibbs…Major Mass Spec was having some trouble due to the degradation of the sample and well…the compounds present match several products commercially available so I don't know how much help that will be…what's wrong Bossman?" the dark-haired tech twisted her hands and bounced, her eyes never quite meeting his.

Gibbs stared at the dark-haired woman, his brow knotting as he tried to decide what was wrong with her. She was displaying none of her normal shakes that would indicate just too high a caffeine intake for the day and she was even more pale than normal. His scowl grew as he realized that she was most likely lying, or withholding important information.

"Abs…there something you want to tell me?" His voice was deceptively soft.

"Umn… no?" she said, squirming under his steely-eyed gaze.

*****

Gibbs stormed into Autopsy, startling Ducky as he was about to begin examining a body for one of the other teams.

"I can't believe the nerve of those two" the silver haired agent growled, slightly sub-vocalizing in his anger.

Ducky put his scalpel down carefully and dismissed Palmer, sending his young assistant up to Abby before the were-wolf scared him any further. Thankfully Jimmy was already so nervous around an angry Gibbs that he was too scared to notice the inhuman resonance to the older man's voice.

"What have those young rascals gotten themselves into now?" asked the elderly ME.

"They've taken it upon themselves to go undercover to catch the serial killer we're chasing. Haven't said a word to me, just set the whole thing up behind my back," Gibbs stalked the length of the room, his stride long and deadly. "They've had Abby run up all the documents and history and sworn her to secrecy, told her not to tell me until they were ready to go, _that's_ when they were going to get the mission sanctioned! It's only the fact Abs can't lie worth a damn to me that I found out."

"So what you are telling me is…you are upset that your cub and agent have shown initiative in preparing to continue with an investigation, using techniques that _you_ taught them. Heaven forbid that they actually put your teachings to actual use…I mean, what are those boys _thinking?_ They were even inconsiderate enough to hold back and not put the plan into action until they had everything ready for your approval," Ducky said, his voice laced with a gentle sarcasm.

Gibbs stopped his pacing to stare at the older man. It had totally escaped him that the younger agents were only using his own teachings to guide them whilst he was pretty much out of the game, the elderly doctor was also right in the fact that although they had prepared for the undercover op they hadn't actually put it into action. He thought back to the encounter in Abby's lab when they had returned to see the upset Goth and their glowering boss.

_Tony and Tim were still laughing as they entered Abby's lab, though their levity soon fled when they saw the expression on Gibbs' face. The silver-haired agent was standing with a pale and shaken looking Abby, their fake ID's were up on the large plasma and their boss looked furious. Tony gulped as his Alpha leveled an icy blue stare at them. Gibbs' voice could have etched granite._

_"Would either of you boys like to explain why you have planned an entire operation behind my back? And why you have used NCIS resources without sanction?"_

"_B…b…boss!" Tim said, stammering like he had years ago when first joining the team._

"_Boss…It was my idea," Tony stood in front of McGee, protecting the younger man from his Alpha's wrath._

"_Oh, I'm sure it was DiNozzo…somehow I can't imagine either Abby or McGee deciding the smart thing to do would be to sneak around behind my back, lying to me…just because I'm injured doesn't mean I can be left out of the loop. Just when did you plan on letting me know about this? Or were you going to bypass me altogether?" Gibbs growled, noticing how neither agent could look him in the eye._

_Tony couldn't help his response, he dropped his posture slightly and tilted his head to the side, as near to exposing his neck as possible whilst in public, as it was he was fighting the urge to shift to wolf form for a proper display._

"_We just wanted everything ready for you Boss…you know, cross the t's and dot the i's, I thought it would be the most productive course of action whilst you and Ziva are out of commission," he said, trying to smile at his Alpha and failing miserably. _

"_Oh…you 'thought'…? You just thought you could to whatever the hell you wanted without checking with your A… team lead __**first**__?" Gibbs glared, using his full were-wolf aura to intimidate the other agents._

_Tony stared after Gibbs as the older man stalked out of the room. The young were-wolf was confused by his Alpha's outburst. It was out of character, especially considering how relaxed the other man had been earlier in the day. _

Gibbs scrubbed his hand over his face and sighed, nodding his thanks to his old friend as he headed out to find his team. He was going to have to make it up to them, maybe even apologize for his unusual behavior.

*****

Tony sat on a bench outside NCIS headquarters, shoulders hunched against the inclement weather. He had bolted shortly after Gibbs had left the lab and was sitting out in the rain with only a thin sports coat over his t-shirt and slacks. He shook slightly as he remembered the fury in his leader's eyes. The young Bane-wolf was fretting, his time mulling over the days' events had him convinced that he had pushed his Alpha too far. He had no idea _why_ Gibbs was so angry, but was well on the way to convincing himself that his Alpha was about ready to cut him loose and leave him to the Council's not so tender mercies.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Here's Chapter 7. I hope you like! Please review. Chapter 8 has Rhi, Den and Abby goodness plus some wolfie fun. Chapter 9 will have the action starting properly... suggestions for bad guy names greatly appreciated!

Thanks to Alder for her wonderful help, she is now a deity within the fanfiction pantheon *grin* her festival includes a red pen parade and the chant of 'tsk' :-p

Disclaimer: One day they will be miiiiiiine! *shakes fist dramatically*

Chapter 7

Gibbs left Ducky to his work and went in search of his team. The anger still stirred within him but at least now he was calm enough to look within himself and discover the cause of it. He hadn't realised just how much he considered his extended team as members of the pack, even before Tony's transformation. With Ziva badly hurt and his own injury he was forced to rely on DiNozzo to protect McGee, Abby, Ducky and Palmer and the frustration of being relegated to the sidelines chafed.

The issue of Tony being an Omega ranking wolf didn't help matters. Although Gibbs trusted the younger agent with his life and would have trusted his instincts as an Agent before his change, the Alpha was concerned that DiNozzo would still react poorly in some situations due to his new reactions. If it had been possible Gibbs would have taken his newest pack member to the retreat for at least a year before putting him back into the high stress world they worked in.

He headed up to the bullpen, McGee was most likely back at his desk by now. As he walked, Gibbs thought about the discussion…no…interrogation…with Abby earlier.

_*****_

"_Abs…there something you want to tell me?" His voice was deceptively soft._

"_Umn…no?" she said, squirming under his steely-eyed gaze._

"_Abby... You are hiding something and I __**will**__ find out what it is one way or another," Gibbs growled, allowing some of his Alpha intonation to come through._

"_I promised them I wouldn't tell you Gibbs, not until they were ready..." Abby said before clapping her hands over her mouth._

_Gibbs levelled a glare at her, something of a rare event in Abby's case. The lab tech turned her music off and stood, waiting for the explosion. Gibbs was not used to being denied information._

"_Who did you promise Abs?" his voice still dangerously calm._

"_Tony and Tim... It's nothing bad, I swear.. they just need to get things ready to show you Gibbs...can't you trust them?" Abby pleaded._

_Gibbs just went over to the monitor that had suddenly changed as he entered the room and he pressed a couple of keys, proving to the Goth that, despite appearances, the older man had actually paid attention to her and McGee over the years. It brought up the last active program, the two displays of Tony and Tim's fake ID's. The silver-haired agent turned to Abby with a scowl._

"_And just what are these about?" he asked._

_Abby told him the whole plan as there was nothing else she could do. She tried to do as much damage control as possible but it was obvious the agent was fuming. She chewed her lip nervously as the two laughing agents entered the room. If the situation hadn't been so serious the change from laughter to nervous glances would have been amusing._

*****

Gibbs growled as he walked up the stairs, avoiding the confines of the elevator. Injured and avoiding pain relief, his Wolf was very close to the surface. Fighting his instinctive response to the situation, he forced himself to calm down, if he went into the bullpen in this state he would terrify McGee.

The Alpha scrubbed at his face and took a calming breath. Entering the Team area he saw McGee at his desk, subdued after the earlier scene. Gibbs came to a stop in front of the younger man's desk, he looked around and couldn't see DiNozzo anywhere in the room.

"McGee." He kept his voice soft.

"B-Boss?" McGee looked up from his screen, his shoulders still slightly bowed.

"This plan...you really think it could work?" Gibbs asked, his tone calm and non-confrontational.

"Yes Boss," McGee showed no hesitation, "Tony has planned it thoroughly, if we got your permission to go ahead we were going to request Thompson's team as backup, or maybe Cassie Yates and her team as this skirts on Vice territory."

Gibbs nodded slowly.

"Fine, carry on the preparations DiNozzo set for you to do...I'm going to go find him," Gibbs nodded firmly and started to walk off before coming back, "... and Tim? I'm sorry about earlier."

McGee could only gape as his team leader disappeared from sight.

*****

Tony shivered in the rain, he hunched his shoulders against the weather and stared out across the park. This was the same spot that Ari had sat in all those years ago when he had shot at Abby in her lab. Tony squinted through the falling water - with his enhanced sight he could just make out his friend as she worked in her lab, even at this distance he could see the sad slump to her shoulders.

The young Bane-Wolf turned as he sensed someone else approaching, his keen nose thwarted by the rain. He quickly recognised his boss and he sighed, not looking forward to their meeting. Tony jerked with surprise as Gibbs draped his own coat across the younger man's shoulders, causing him to shiver with delight at the warmth against his chilled skin. The older man grasped his friend by the elbow and led him to a nearby gazebo, the structure gave them privacy and got them out of the rain.

"Tony..." Gibbs started.

"Boss..." Tony spoke at the same time.

Both men's lips twitched and Tony ducked his head in submission, waiting for his Alpha to speak.

"Tony...about before... I was taken by surprise. I hadn't expected you to go ahead and plan an offensive, especially in so much depth and it...well, it caught me by surprise. I've been sticking pretty close to you these past months and you have barely left the house without me, Rhi or Den in tow and the idea of you going in deep undercover with no pack or Clan to back you up...well it shook me. I was worried that the Council could take it as me not controlling you and use it as an excuse to take you away from the pack." Gibbs tilted the younger man's face up so he could look him straight in the eye "I'm sorry I lost it like that...with the injury and no painkillers...I'm kinda on edge"

The silver-haired agent tilted his head, trying to read the grey-green eyes of his subordinate. Tony was giving nothing away beyond a slight widening of his eyes when his boss apologised. Now they were so close together and out of the rain Tony could use his enhanced senses and they all agreed that Gibbs was being honest. He pulled his Alpha's warm coat closer around him, inhaling the familiar and comforting scent. It astounded him anew how the sound and scent of his Alpha invoked feelings he always assumed were associated with a father figure... not that he'd ever felt that way about his own father.

The younger agent looked into the sincere blue gaze of his boss and his lips quirked up into a small smile.

"What about 'never apologise, it's a sign of weakness' Boss? Breaking rule six are we now?" Tony's smile was weak but at least it was there.

"I'll tell you the same thing I told Ducky... never between friends. DiNozzo, I was wrong. You repeat that to anyone and I'll deny it...and you'll be stuck doing deskwork for the next year," Gibbs smiled softy and rubbed the younger man's shoulder briefly before standing up.

"So... what now?" Tony remained seated, looking up at his boss through worried eyes.

"Now we make sure this idiotic plan of yours is foolproof, and make sure you have more than enough backup... Oh, Abby is coming over for dinner tonight, I told her it's your treat for getting her in trouble," Gibbs grinned as he lead his young pack-member back towards the NCIS building.

Tony smiled back, relaxing again...at least until he realised that meant an evening with both Abby and Rhi.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Another chapter. I apologise about the wait, and the lack of action. I am trying to give the story depth and detail... everything has meaning as you hopefully noticed in my first story... the undercover mission starts next chapter.

Question... would you like to hear Den's story in a chapter here or as a standalone one-shot?

Thanks to Alder, once again you have cured my terminal case of Repeatitis

Disclaimer: Only the voices in my head belong to me.

Chapter 8

Abby pulled up outside Gibbs' house, her cherry-red hearse coming to a smooth halt. Although she had briefly met Tony's new girlfriend in the past, she was still nervous about spending time with the British woman, there was something about her that made the Goth uncomfortable. She ran up to the door and opened it easily, calling out cheerily. She was happy that Gibbs and Tony seemed to have settled their differences again.

"Tony? Bossman? I brought cookies," Abby kicked off her shoes and headed into the family room.

There was no sign of either agent, though the auburn-haired photographer was curled up on the sofa, reading. Rhi looked up as Abby entered the room and closed her book on American history.

"Hi Abby. The guys are out back, Tony's lighting the grill," she said as way of greeting.

"Oh hey Rhi, thanks," Abby replied, smiling cautiously.

The two women were heading out when Rhi heard Den call out telepathically that he had arrived and would join them shortly. Rhi mentally alerted Gibbs and Tony to Abby's arrival as they came out onto the deck, just to make sure that whatever topic being discussed was safe for human ears.

"Hey guys, I brought my famous triple chocolate cookies," Abby gave Tony an enthusiastic hug and presented her cheek to Gibbs for a kiss, her eyes latched onto Tony's new blue and white kennel. "Hey Gibbs? When did you guys get a dog?"

"_Hey Den, go Wolf wouldja? Forgot about the kennel." _Tony sent out the telepathic request as quick as he could, before the massive black man could come outside. "_Rhi, in my room there's a couple bandanas Abby gave me a while back for some reason, tie one around Den's neck…make him more pet and less wolf please."_

"_Good thinking DiNozzo, get to it Rhi, Den," _Gibbs joined in the silent conversation, backing up his quick- thinking subordinate.

Tony started talking to Abby, needing to distract her momentarily to give Den time to shift and Rhi time to make him more dog-like. She was more than used to his normal segues and didn't bat an eyelid at the apparently unconnected comments.

"Oh before I forget, Abs, I got my hands on a pre-release blu-ray of Avatar...my old frat buddy Eric works for the distribution company, he got me it in return for me doing him a favour. The SFX are out of this world, I must have seen that film about eight times in the cinema whilst we were on restricted duty...anyway...Eric, the frat buddy? His brother is in the Navy and based locally and was just deployed for a few months, normally Eric would take his brother's dog but Eric's wife, Susan, just had a baby and didn't want the dog about the kid so I got the dog in return for several pre-release DVDs. Since I'm staying here and the Boss said it's ok, I'm ok to have a dog, which I couldn't have done in my old apartment." Tony babbled easily, thanking his undercover skills. "He's only here a few more days but will probably be here semi-regular so we set up a kennel ready for his visits."

Just as the brown-haired agent finished talking Rhi came back outside with a large black wolf, a red bandana covered in skulls tied jauntily around his neck. Den bounced along to heel, wagging his tail. Gibbs hid his grin behind a sip of his coffee, there was little mistaking the huge animal for anything other than a wolf, though the black colour was unusually deep and even for a natural wolf.

"Oh wow, he's huge.. is he a wolf?" Abby cautiously held out a hand to the happy animal.

"He's a bit of a mutt, some shepherd, some husky and some akita," Tony said, ignoring the snort from Den.

"Well, whatever he is, he's beautiful," Abby stroked him gently, Den lapping up the attention with a blissful look on his face.

"So Abby, what do you think of the CD Tony gave you?" Rhi asked.

"It's great! I can't believe I never heard of them before! Seriously, these British bands are the best, right on the edge," Abby forgot her earlier sense of unease as she talked about music with the other girl.

Tony started cooking the steaks; he threw an extra one on for Den as thanks for covering for them. Cooking gave him time to observe the others present. Gibbs was leaning against the deck railing, a beer in hand and a soft smile on his lips as he watched Rhi and Abby talking. The silver-haired agent rested a hand easily on Den's head, petting the silky fur in an absent-minded fashion. Abby was sitting cross-legged on the swing settee, hands flying as she talked music with the equally animated redhead.

Gibbs helped Tony serve the food, putting plates laden with steak, potatoes and salad onto the picnic table on the deck. The silver haired agent roughly cut up one steak and placed it on a tin plate along with some chopped potato and put it on the floor for Den.

"_Thanks Gibbs," _Den sat, wagging his tail until given permission to eat; he would be calling on Tony for several favours after this.

As the others sat around the table and started to eat Tony turned to his Goth friend and spoke.

"So, anything interesting happen after I took off earlier?" he asked with a smile.

"Science wise, not a lot," she replied, waving her fork in the air. "But Leon has decided I need an assistant, though after the fiasco that was Chip I get to interview and choose them myself!"

The were-wolves all smiled at the bouncing girl, her excitement rolling off her in waves of good feelings. With his empathic abilities Tony found Abby very refreshing to be around, her energy both invigorating and soothing, as much a contradiction as the rest of her. Letting the conversation flow over him, the young Bane considered his friend, she looked so tough and intimidating with her Goth style and collection of tattoos yet she was the sweetest and friendliest person he knew, she was a good catholic and went bowling with nuns yet had an..._interesting_...personal life. Shaking his head he tuned back in to the conversation.

"Anyway...I have, like, six interviews lined up over the next two weeks Gibbs, and I'm just going to have them come into the lab and assist me for a day whilst I get to know them, ask questions...you know? See how well they cope with being around the work, there's no way I can know who I want from a stuffy interview...and I want you to come in and be all growly like you usually are," Abby grinned wickedly, "I can't use anyone that can't cope with you guys. Tony, you'll help out too right? You two have the _best_ instincts for this kind of thing."

Gibbs smiled at the raven-haired woman - Abby had always brought out his playful side, even before he had a pack to ground him and encourage his natural behaviour again. Since taking on Rhi and Tony and - by extension - Den, Gibbs felt younger and more carefree than he had since losing his first family.

"Sure Abs, I'll be around and check 'em out for you," Gibbs said, taking a sip of his beer.

"I'll be my usual sunny self, then we'll know what they're like," Tony grinned. "And remember, we need to fit a garbage disposal so they can't take any bite marks or prints."

Abby shook her head; she didn't know how Tony could joke about the events that had happened a few years ago. How could anyone be so cavalier about being framed for murder?

"Oh!" Rhi spoke up. "Play that new album I mentioned, Death of a Dynasty...that will let you know if they are uptight or not."

Gibbs snorted; he still couldn't understand how that noise was called music. Abby and Rhi adored it; Tony seemed to tolerate it quite well but the Alpha found it painful to listen to.

Abby curled up against Gibbs and stroked Den's silky fur. She had had a great evening and it was nice to spend time with her friends outside of work. She really liked the young British woman, even though something still piqued her curiosity, though looking at how the petite redhead was curled in Tony's lap there was no doubt about the deep affection there. The Goth wasn't sure for certain whether Tony was in fact dating her or whether the two were just very close friends - either way the need to know was driving her crazy.

After Abby had left Gibbs sighed in relief. She was still unsuspecting about their were-wolf status and had been given a chance to socialise with Rhi and Tony, further cementing the idea that any minor changes were due to his new relationship. The Alpha watched his pack mates as they sat under the stars, Rhi on Tony's lap and heads bowed close together as they spoke quietly. He was fairly certain their relationship was no longer strictly platonic but there was also no sign of either wishing to go beyond occasional casual dates yet. He spoke to Den via a 'closed' telepathic link.

"_I think it's time you had 'the talk' with Tony...before his relationship with Rhi goes any further,"_ Gibbs looked up as the Bane came back from changing to his human form.

"_I know Gibbs, I'll talk to him tomorrow. It's been so busy I've been behind with his training,"_ Den replied using the same private wavelength.

*****

Petty Officer Janet Wainright was arguing with the barman in O'Malley's.

"Mark! I only had a couple of drinks, you are not having my keys," she said, flushed with embarrassment and anger.

"Look, Janet, I saw you trip a minute ago. You get into a wreck, and the cops pull that security footage, then you're in prison, and I'm out of a job. I'll call you a cab and you can get your car in the morning," Mark replied, trying to keep his tone calm.

"Don't do me any favours. I'll find my own way back! God, you guys are paranoid…" the petty officer turned and flounced out of the bar. She pulled out her cell and rang her room-mate to let her know she was on her way home and would be on the late bus that dropped off outside the base.

"He had no right!" she grumbled. "I'm safe to drive…now I gotta walk three blocks to the night bus, paranoid idiot. I just tripped over the stool, I only had a couple of drinks. I'll see you soon, Claire."

She hung up, not noticing the figures exiting the alley just behind her. Her first clue was the hand that grabbed at her purse, pulling it from under her arm. She turned and clutched at her attacker, only then realising she was outnumbered. Clawing at a face, she tried to escape, only to find her way blocked. She saw the dull glint of a pipe as it swung towards her, twisting as fast as her alcohol dulled senses allowed, she wasn't able to fully avoid it. With her head now ringing she started to scream as she fell under the attack, desperately scratching and biting at anything she could reach. Her assailants swore before one managed to get a clean blow with his weapon, and Janet crumpled to the ground.

*****

At ten the following morning two men taking a cigarette break found her beaten corpse dumped in an alley behind their workplace. NCIS were called to investigate what was, to all outward appearances, a common mugging.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N – Hey! I'm back and the story is continuing at long last. I am so sorry that it's been on hiatus this long, since I last posted we had the fire, moved house a total 3 times, lost the cat in the fire, gained 2 new cats, lost some family, my niece was born, lost my dog (old age), mystery neuro condition is back! So all in all... a weird/exciting/scary/crappy year, hence no updates.

But! I refuse to let a sleeping dog (or were!Gibbs) lie and here's the next part, I will try to keep the updates at least weekly.

Thank you so much to Alder who suddenly had a chapter appear out of nowhere with a demand of "oi, re-read the fic! Here's some more!" and she's got it back to me within a day! She is indeed a goddess, so a dark chocolate coated Peter Bishop especially for you m'dear!

Huge hugs and thanks to everyone who's sent messages since the fire – am back in my own house again, it's been rebuilt and it's good to be home. I miss my Maxie sooo much so expect him to pop up in a chapter or two.

Seriously, the number of well wishes have astounded me, not a single note just moaning about no updates so thanks again and here's a snippet, the action story continues in the next chapter.

Disclaimer – def not mine, if anyone wants birthday prezzie ideas though... *wink*

* * *

Tony groaned as his cell rang at an unearthly hour. Fumbling, he pulled it to his ear, recognising Den's ringtone - it had amused him to use a clip of the rock classic 'Howling at the Moon'.

"Y'h? W'zz'p? Scht'll d'rk," he slurred, not even attempting to pull himself from under the warm comforter.

"C'mon Cub, time to be up and at 'em. I need to fit some training in before you go to work, meet me at the park in thirty," Den hung up, chuckling as he heard Tony mutter sleep-blurred curses at him.

Tony hauled himself out of bed and got dressed in his usual morning gear, running kit topped by his worn and beloved Ohio State hoodie. Despite it being dark out and even _Gibbs_ being still in bed, Rhi was at the counter and making what smelled like waffle batter. She turned and gave him a broad smile, which only widened at his grumpy, half-asleep grunt of greeting.

"Morning. Den gave me a call, breakfast will be ready when you come home. Be good for teacher." She gave him a cheeky peck on the nose and whirled back to the bowl of batter.

Shaking his head, Tony headed on out. Rhi had only been living with them for a short while really – yet she had thoroughly taken over Gibbs' home and their lives. For some reason she always seemed to be baking and he was already dreading the fact that she was soon heading back to England for a visit with her old pack. Tony still wasn't allowed to travel outside of the DC area without Gibbs and Den and couldn't accompany her.

It was a fifteen minute jog to the park that the pac k had taken to using. There was a dense wooded area that they could use for their more – unusual – training as well as the normal running paths and picnic areas. On this occasion Tony headed for the old groundskeeper's shed that he and Den used for a base, where they could sit and talk for the theory side of the day. He no longer resented the older Bane's presence in his life...much. They were slowly on the path to becoming fast friends and for the most part Tony was grateful that his mentor was both willing to kick back and have fun but tough enough to drive Tony on when he needed it.

Den looked up as his young charge came in - he smiled when he saw the jog had woken the younger Bane up and Tony was now alert and apparently in a good mood. The older Were couldn't help but chuckle when he noticed that his student had only been awake just over twenty minutes but had still managed to get a trace of Rhi's scent on him, even in that short time. It looked like this lesson was just in time.

"Hey Cub," Den nodded, he wasn't sure when it had changed from an insult to affection, "we're a fair bit behind and...well...Gibbs and I think you may be allowed out after curfew after this here lesson."

The older Were could almost see Tony's Wolf prick his ears at that. The youngest member of the pack hadn't been allowed out on his own outside of work since his transformation, at least not for extended periods. Without a specific task to keep him focussed he still had trouble interacting with others without his senses distracting him.

"Right, first things first... I've been talking with Gibbs, about _before_... and he says you were a ladies' man - a new name each week. Well, that has to stop." Den almost laughed at the pout Tony gave him.

"Now Cub, just listen. Our kind, we're designed to bolster the Were population, to bond with a mate and produce lots o' lil' Cubs for the pack. It's...a watch-a-ma-call-it...genetic imperative." He narrowed his eyes at Tony's snort, "hey, I watch Discovery Channel, you learn stuff...anyway, the Pack that are born this way, they learn as they grow up how to control the bonding process, it's all about emotions being on the same wave length and all that hippy crap. The most important thing to remember is, kid...bonding is for _life_... 'til death do us part' is the only way it can be broken naturally. Of course it _can_ be broken, by the Lycus Mystica but they get darn pissy if'n we ask 'em to break a bond."

Tony blinked, this was something that had never occurred to him. He could feel the blood drain from his face as it suddenly hit, a night partying could lead to a whole different set of consequences now. Until he found his one and only then he was going to have to keep his hands to himself. He snorted and shook his head, well, _he_ knew what he meant.

"I gotta ask ya kid...what's goin' on with you and Rhi?" Den asked, his tone even and without any animosity.

"Umn... it's complicated," Tony shrugged. "We flirt...and I like hanging out with her, but...y'know... we...umn...cuddle" the younger man blushed and ducked his head.

Whilst he had been loud and obnoxious in the past when relating his adventures to others, for once Tony was considering a serious relationship, though at the moment they were still just friends who happened to flirt – a lot. Tony remembered there was a time this is how he acted with Abby, before they drifted into the sibling like situation they had now, so it wasn't like he was sitting planning his wedding with Rhi.

"Well Cub, just remember, she's Pack, and that's way more important," Den gripped Tony's shoulder and gave him a one-handed hug. "As a Bane – you've got years 'fore you've to worry about settling down and she's barely more than a cub, so don't you be doin' anythin' stupid and rushin' into anythin', you never know – she could be the one and it's fate or she ain't and you've just got a friend for life. Now the technical stuff."

Den went on to explain in great detail about how Tony would have to be careful with his strength with humans and how he could potentially bond even with them. In fact most banes were humans that had bonded to a Were and wanted to become Pack so that they could have the most fulfilling relationship possible. His heightened senses were also going to prove problematic as they would make him more - drawn - to certain women too. Den chuckled at the look of mingled horror and disgust as Tony realised he would be able to tell when a woman was at her most...receptive...merely by scent.

"This is going to make working with Ziva hell!" he said, banging his head on the wall.

"You think of her as extended pack, so what's going to make it worse is when she smells of men from outside the pack," Den pointed out dryly.

"But...but I don't even _like_ Ziva...not like _that_ anyways," Tony spluttered, shocked at even the thought.

"Yeah, but it's not that you want her, it's cos they're not _Pack,_" Den stressed. "We don't like our pack smelling of outsiders, sucks but it's there..."

All in all, Tony left his morning's class feeling somewhat more impressed than he had been by Mrs Gafferty's lecture of 'Don't do it, it's dirty!' from high school. He turned it over in his mind as he jogged back to Gibbs' place just in time to have breakfast, shower and change for work. Today was their last day for planning the op and going to the Director with it - with any luck in three days he would be Tonio, out with his geeky cousin Timmy and ready for some action.


	10. Chapter 10

I am so so so sorry about the delays… gah so much for good intentions eh?

Here's the next chapter, next will be up as *soon* as I can, there is no way this will be abandoned I promise.

Thanks go to my ever tolerant and super duper Beta, Alder is the best and everyone should send *her* cookies – the amount of work she does to make this readable… you would not believe!

Disclaimer – still not mine apart from my OC's of course and I *think* you'd have noticed the were-wolf thing in the show… or would you…?

* * *

Chapter 10

Tony paced anxiously between his and Tim's desks as he waited for the younger agent to arrive. They had until three in the afternoon to have every eventuality covered and ready to present to the Director. Ziva was going to be out of action for quite a while yet and Gibbs would be desk duty only for at least the next week, two if Ducky had any say in the matter, so they had drawn up duty rosters for working with Cassie Yates and her Vice team. They had worked together in the past and knew that the other team were very efficient and reliable for undercover backup and Cassie herself was amazing undercover. That would prove valuable for giving the two men a contact with NCIS as they would be going in deep with no direct line of communication with anyone at work.

This was another thing that had Tony on edge - he would have no direct contact with his Pack, though he could possibly arrange the occasional meeting with Den. Heck, at over six feet, heavily muscled and his arms and chest heavily tattooed, the older Bane fit into the gang stereotype quite well. His natural ability to adapt to his surroundings and to intimidate would allow him to blend into Tony and Tim's temporary new neighbourhood. The young Were made a mental note about seeing if they could rent Den an apartment in the same building. If nothing else at least then they could communicate telepathically.

This was going to be an intense test of his control, he would be around people that made no attempt to mask their emotions and they would be almost certainly volatile and negative in their energy - he wouldn't have his pack to ground him and he would have his green partner to look out for as well as the usual stress of deep undercover. Although Tim was no longer a probie when it came to general field work he had never had to go undercover and become an entirely different person for what could be weeks.

Tim came in and they were soon sharing a desk, heads close together and talking in hushed tones. Gibbs would be in before much longer, he had to meet with Ducky first, and would want to go over the plan with them before they took it to Vance. The two young agents had already found suitable accommodation that suited their backgrounds as working class cousins; it was low rent but fully serviceable, within easy reach of several amenities and in slight disrepair. This would give Tim a lot of access for wiring the place up for surveillance without causing any noticeable damage. It was on the third floor with no elevator and only a narrow staircase and a fire escape so easily defensible but also easy to escape if necessary - it even had roof access.

Tony had scoped out the pound and found several possible cars, all slightly beat up but with tuned engines, seized in drug busts. They had the looks to fit in but the power for either a chase or escape – whichever was needed. A couple of them would work along with a beat up van for the surveillance team, there was another apartment available to rent across the street that overlooked theirs that would be ideal as the surveillance team 'base'. The entire area had a lot of transient residents so a number of people moving in and out at once would raise no suspicions, especially since the owner of one of the Italian restaurants in the area owed Tony a favour back from his Baltimore days and was willing to play 'Uncle Sal' to the boys.

Salvatore Minnelli had a small place on the edge of a poor but respectable community made up primarily of Italian-Americans. In recent years the neighbouring areas had become somewhat less pleasant but Sal was still happy there. Years before he had owned an even smaller cafe in Baltimore and his parents ran the D.C. one. One night as he was about to empty the register, a man broke into his Baltimore cafe and held him at gunpoint. He was rescued by the then Detective DiNozzo and had promptly declared the young man his saviour, proceeding to adopt Tony into his large and exuberant family. Sal had kept in touch and when he had taken over his parent's place after their retirement he made sure that Tony came over at least two or three times a year for food and company. He had no children of his own and was happy to use Tony as the target of all his matchmaking attempts.

It made it fair easier for the two agents to be accepted into a new neighbourhood if they had 'relatives' in the area, and with Sal and his enormous family all already used to Sal and his habit of adopting waifs and strays into the fold there would be little difficulty getting them 'in'. Sal even offered to let them do some menial work for him, it offered a low income and gave them a reason for looking for quick and easy cash.

"Tony, why is Mr Minnelli doing so much to help us? Are you sure we can trust him?" Tim asked. He was slightly suspicious of the helpful older man.

"Of course we can trust him Tim. What people don't realise is Nonno Minnelli had passed on his desire to serve and a large portion of his family were NYPD, past and present. Nonno moved here to open the restaurant as Maria was from D.C. and when he left the force they wanted out of New York," Tony grinned, "Sal was always more into food, far more like his Mamma so he set up in Baltimore and came home when they retired."

Tim looked dazed, he was overwhelmed by the size and complexity of the traditional Italian-American family but could see how it would serve them well. Being 'several generations down the line' he and Tony could get away with their less-than-Mediterranean looks, though Tony at least had the tan and could pull off an authentic accent as well as being semi-fluent in Italian. Tim was desperately learning as much as he could in a short period, focussing on insults and jokes.

"_At least we already have the annoying big brother and brainy little brother dynamic," _Tim thought to himself, smirking, no-one would doubt they were related – hopefully they would accept the 'half-brothers' part for the lack of physical similarities.

* * *

Gibbs swirled his coffee cup and glared at the contents. He was furious at himself for getting injured and not being able to help Tony in the field on this op. He had contacted Cassie Yates and thoroughly informed her of what he'd do if her team failed to protect his agents - as far as she was concerned he was still just worried about Tony going into the field without his team for the first time since his torture.

Although the Alpha trusted his pack member implicitly he worried that the Council may not be so understanding. The agreement was Tony had to live with Gibbs until they said otherwise. It could be years before they allowed him to live by himself, however, they had also agreed that he would have full freedom to continue his job as usual with Gibbs' supervision. This was giving him a headache.

Tony crept into Ducky's office. The elderly ME had silently nodded towards the door when the younger man had come looking for his boss and Alpha. As he slipped into the room he saw Gibbs run a hand across his brow, pausing to pinch the bridge of his nose, a sure sign of a migraine developing.

"Umn… Boss?" the young Bane murmured, recognising the signs. He stepped further into the room, helped himself to the Tylenol and got a glass of water, passing them both to Gibbs without saying anything further.

The Alpha took the tablets and swallowed them, grimacing as he did so. He realised that it was better to accept the medication than have his subordinate pull out the big guns and fetch the ME, Ducky would probably insist the injured man went home to 'rest' – not something he was willing to risk.

"What's wrong Tony?" he asked, leaning back and closing his eyes as he waited for the medication to kick in.

"Boss, what are we going to do about the Council if I go undercover?" Tony's brow wrinkled as he paced anxiously. "It's only been a few months, no way will they let me live away from the pack. I…I've had an idea but I'm not sure…"

"Go on," Gibbs smiled inwardly, glad to see that his faith in his lead agent wasn't unfounded. He had been prepared to call him to a meeting to discuss this particular problem but the younger man had beaten him to it.

"Well, the apartment block me and McGee have got lined up – there's another vacant apartment in it. I was thinking Den could move in? He'd be directly below me and the Probie, we can 'talk' telepathically whenever we need to at that range and it would be easy for us to befriend the new guy if he moved in after us. That area has a high turnover rate of tenants so it wouldn't be suspicious. Den would have to stay out of the case but – well, maybe the council would be happy with that level of supervision?" Tony rubbed his neck as he paced, anxiety pouring off him. He couldn't believe how much planning he'd done before remembering the council and their mandates about his life, especially after he'd specifically thought about it earlier then managed to forget with the shear amount of preparation needed.

Gibbs nodded slowly. It was a well thought out solution and would in theory keep the council happy. He knew perfectly well that Den had the presence and ability to become an Alpha in his own right if he so chose but was happier in a lower role in the Pack. If the huge Bane could live in the same building as Tony then it would provide a layer of protection and also give the young Were a valuable ally should he struggle with his – condition – in the situation he would be facing.

"I'll call Den and Jeni, get it cleared. It makes sense though, with his size and those tats, Den won't stick out in that part of town and McGee doesn't know him so won't react suspiciously." Gibbs gave one of his rare smiles, allowing the younger man to see and sense the pride he felt.

* * *

Several days later Tony hugged Rhi and threw his tatty holdall into the trunk of his cover car. They were cleared for the op and thanks to the work already done they were ready to go. He was joining Tim with only their undercover gear and meeting at an NCIS safe house to perform the final mission checks with Gibbs, Cassie and Director Vance. Abby would be there to double check the equipment.

The surveillance team had gotten into an apartment a block over from Tim and Tony's new home and were also ready. The only delay from the previous week had been spreading out the various people moving into the neighbourhood, as even with the high turnaround it was best to play it safe.

It also allowed 'Uncle Sal' to spread the word that his 'no-good nephews' were coming to town and he hoped to be able to straighten them out.

Letting out a deep huff as he got out the car at the safe house, Tony winced – he was going to have to be extra careful about his sub-vocalisations whilst living with McGee. This was going to be a true test of his abilities to control his wolf. He could only hope that the trust put in him by his pack, by Jeni and by Den would be valid and that he could get through the next days or weeks without incident.


End file.
